LEGS - LeTourneau University Empowering Global Solutions

Vision

Across the globe, the highest demand for lower-extremity prostheses exists in areas where extensive walking is a routine part of each day. Unfortunately, these areas are generally located within the poorest of countries where technology is the least advanced and resources most scarce. Due to these factors, there continues to be a significant unmet need for prosthetic devices that specifically meet the technological, economical, and social requirements of developing nations. Key to the problem is the lack of an affordable, articulating knee joint and a durable prosthetic foot that (together) promote proper gait. While some organizations have produced a number of satisfactory components, a prosthesis is truly appropriate for use in a developing nation only when it is a functional synthesis of quality components, specifically designed for the under-developed world, with robust interfaces between each element.

The mission of the LEGS (LeTourneau Empowering Global Solutions) initiative is to design, create, and test high-quality prosthetic devices. These devices are for patients in developing nations, focusing on above-knee prostheses. In addition, these devices are designed to be inexpensive and maintenance free, improving gait while still meeting the manufacturing, rehabilitation, and cultural constraints of various international sites.

Within the developing nations where LEGS technology is present, the objective of the LEGS program is to create local self-sufficiency. Whether prosthetic technology, visual literacy, or Small Plot Irrigation, the goal of LEGS is not force change upon people living in developing countries who have their own distinct set of culture and values. Rather, LEGS hopes to create mutual cooperation with local countries and NGOs to work together to solve problems that could not be solved otherwise. By partnering with organizations having a worldwide presence, the LEGS program can expand to every continent where there is a significant need for LEGS solutions, both technical and non-technical. Access to this technology can give amputees a second chance to achieve a quality of life level that they could not achieve otherwise. However, while the LEGS program works with the upmost respect for cultural differences, the LEGS team hopes to embody the greatest strengths of Christian “gospel work.” In other word, when salvation is understood in its fullest sense, a manifold call upon the Christian is required to cultivate social, physical, economic, political, international, cultural and environmental change, indicative of God’s will “on earth as it is in heaven.” The LEGS program is humbly working to achieve this goal.

The LEGS program also continues to serve as a unique educational opportunity for LETU students. Besides the Engineering and Science students who have worked with the program for the past five years, LEGS wants to continue to grow to become a Global Service Learning (GSL) opportunity for every student, regardless of academic discipline. Whether utilizing skills in Education, English, Business, etc., every LETU student should have the opportunity to contribute works that have 1) international scope, 2) learning, and 3) service. GSL will provide students with more than just a class abroad, or international travel; it offers a chance to use their skills for the betterment of the less fortunate around the world.